Assignment 1 – Music Culture Exercise – Due 2/6
Write a 500-word paper (approximately two double-spaced typed pages) on one of the three music cultures listed below. Choose your music style, watch the appropriate You-tube video, and:
– Describe the social setting of the music.
– Describe the ensemble set up and instrumentation.
– Describe the basic social organization of the performance including the interaction between the performers and audience; how is the audience reacting to the music?
– Construct a brief timeline of the linear form of the performance (opening theme, vocal verse 1, vocal chorus, verse 2, chorus, trumpet solo, etc, etc,)
– Based on this video performance speculate on the music’s social function. Here you should consult the respective articles in your reader for the background.
– Conclude with a paragraph about the “global” or “transnational” nature of your music culture. What are its roots in this music and how did it come to the US? How has it moved out from the US to other corners of the globe? Consult the respective articles in your reader for the background.
Please pay close attention to writing style, basic grammar, and spelling. Your paper will be graded on style as well as content. Please be sure to proofread your paper carefully. Limit your direct quotations, and do not plagiarize!
Music Examples (pick one):
1) Manny Oquendo Y Conjunto Libre (Nuyorican Salsa) – “Elena Elena” http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Dwvxvdf8OBs&list=PLE1002C840BEE578D&index=13&feature=plpp_video
2) Frank London & Lorin Sklamberg (Jewish Klezmer Music) – “Tsuker-zis @ Shalom on Szeroka Street 2011” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FfiLTozqsko
3) Black Stalin (West Indian Soca) – “Black Man Feeling to Party” (from 0:00-3:00) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0zOqmG1Sfck&list=PLE1002C840BEE578D&index=6&feature=plpp
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Assignment 2– Listening Project (midterm) – Due 3/5
You will hand in a hard copy of the midterm assignment in class on March 5th. The the assignment should be a research paper (500 words) about the person you plan to interview. It should be followed by 7-10 thoughtfully sequenced interview questions.
-Include biographical information about the person and an analysis of their music culture.
-Provide an analysis of the music culture using Titon & Slobin’s model.
-Give examples of specific songs, compositions, and/or performances.
-Why did you choose this person and their music culture?
-The interview questions should be based on your research and sequenced thoughtfully.
-The interview should last 30-60 minutes.
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Assignment 3– US Heritage and Micromusics – Due 4/2
Write a 750-1000 word answer (four double-spaced typed pages) to one of the following questions. Your answer must make reference to class readings, lectures, and listening exercises in addition to your own thoughts on the subject.
Please pay close attention to writing style, basic grammar, and spelling. Your paper will be graded on style as well as content. Please be sure to proofread your paper carefully.
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1) Define the term “heritage music” as discussed in class and in the Slobin reading. How are nationalism, diaspora, and transnationalism essential components of the heritage music complex?
Examine Jewish klezmer music and traditional Irish (Celtic) music in the US as examples of heritage musics. Your answer should explore the development and revival of these styles here in the US as well as their importance for Irish and Jewish-Americans. Give specific examples of artists who have helped establish klezmer and Irish music as forms of US heritage music.
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2) Define the term “micromusic” as discussed in class and in the Slobin reading. How can we understand Nuyorican salsa and Nortena/Tejano conjunto music as styles of US micromusics? Your answer should recount the development of salsa andNortena/Tejano conjunto music by particular “ethnic” groups inside and outside the continental US. Give specific examples of artists involved with salsa and Nortena/Tejano conjunto music and the themes of their songs (one artist/song for each style). Close your essay by discussing the transnational dimensions of each style—how have these musics crossed international borders?
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Assignment 4 – Global Hip Hop and Rap Music – Due 5/7
Write a 750-1000 word answer (four double-spaced typed pages) to the following question. Your answer must make reference to class readings, lectures, and listening exercises in addition to your own thoughts on the subject.
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According to cultural theorists Robin Kelley (in The Vinyl Ain’t Final) and Tony Mitchell (in Global Noise), how has African American (US) based rap music incorporated elements of local cultures as it spread around the world? Do you agree with Mitchell that rap has become “a vehicle for global youth affiliation” that provides a forum for global youth protest allowing rap artists to make “political statements about local racial, sexual, employment, and class issues”?
Or do you think that most global rap is just party music that tends to reinforce the values of violence, material greed, and anti-female/gay sentiments (that are the values associated with commercial US gangster rap)?
Choose a rapper/rap group who operates primarily outside the US. Review their history, and how they do or do not conform to the Kelley/Mitchell model. Be sure to analyze the lyrics, the music (the underlying mix), and images if a video is available. Center your analysis on at least one of their rap songs that you have transcribed and translated into English. Please include your lyrical transcription in an appendix to your paper, and a link to You-tube or similar website hear/see the rap song you are analyzing.
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Class Oral Presentation Assignment
You will be assigned to present on one the following music cultures:
– Jewish Klezmer
– Irish Folk and Popular
– Mexican Nortena
– Nuyorican salsa
– West Indian Carnival/Calypso,
– African American Gospel
– Punjabi Bhangra Beat – Global Hip Hop
You will have 15 minutes for your oral presentation that should consist of:
– A brief introduction to your artist and genre (3-4 minutes–a short PowerPoint may be helpful in summarizing essential information)
– Screen your YouTube video (3-4 minutes)
– Your observations on the social function and meaning of the performance (4-5 minutes)
Toward what end does this music operate in this particular social circumstance? What sorts of cultural, spiritual, or political messages does this music convey?
Is it a strong performance? Why or why not?
– Questions and class discussion (4-5 minutes)
Please prepare a one-page hand-out to be distributed in class that includes: – the name and genre of your artist(s)
– the name and link to your video
– transcription of the lyrics (in English).
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Assignment 5– Listening Project (final) – Due 5/19
For the final exam, you will upload your project folder with the following documents to Dropbox:
-introduction (minimum of 250 words). This should be a slimmed-down version of your midterm paper plus a description of the interview setting.
-Audio file of an interview. Phone apps are fine, but there are portable recorders you can check out at the Listening Project office. There are also external microphones for phones that cost around 30 dollars.
-7-10 min. transcription of the interview. I suggest you type it out yourself, but if you choose to use a transcription software, make sure you check for errors.
-Picture/portrait. The photo should be sharp, so take care of lighting. Daylight is the easiest way to crisp pictures.
-Reflection (minimum of 150 words). Reflect on the interview process. Did it go as you planned? What were some challenges? What went well?
-Optional but highly encouraged: signed forms for depositing the documents to the Listening Project archive.
